Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Kevin ClarkeSeptember 08, 2009

A report from today's New York Times offers a reminder, and I think one may have been necessary, that there remain far worse things in the world to worry about than our own many problems in the United States. Distracted as we are by deteriorating conditions in Afghanistan, how the nation is going to emerge from the worst economic slump since the Great Depression, or what socialist-subliminal zombie magic President Obama attempted to work among schoolchildren today, a new body count from the old enemy famine and drought is emerging in Kenya. Parched for multiple seasons, different ethnic groups in Kenya have been driven by the crisis to fight among themselves for the rare, remaining arable land while Western aid groups refrain from a deep rescue effort because of the chaotic political culture that currently prevails. Let's hope they overcome their queasies or Kenyan politicians come to their senses before the dying persists much longer. It couldn't hurt if America and other Western powers could forget their own troubles long enough to recognize real suffering when they see it and respond appropriately to same. 

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

President Donald Trump, center, surrounded by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., and Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., speaks to reporters before a House Republican conference meeting, Tuesday, May 20, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
“These proposed changes threaten access to care for millions of Americans, particularly those in underserved areas, where our member systems work every day to provide quality, compassionate care.”
Kevin ClarkeMay 20, 2025
The Archdiocese of Chicago has scheduled a Mass and a special program to celebrate the election and inauguration of Pope Leo XIV, a native son of the Windy City.
The genre of the crime-solving priest or religious might be a niche one, but it's been around on the page and the screen for more than a century.
James T. KeaneMay 20, 2025
“I would suspect that people are very proud that Chicago produced a pope, and it testifies to the fact that there’s a lot of good here in the city that recommends itself to the church.”
Delaney CoyneMay 20, 2025